The present invention is directed to a circuit and method for detecting the presence of a leakage impedance and determining its location within a high voltage stack of direct current voltage sources (e.g., a battery). A leakage impedance is an error condition where a battery in a battery stack, such as in a hybrid vehicle, is experiencing a fault condition, for example, caused by faulty circuit components and/or faulty insulation or the like. The leakage impedance indicates that a circuit path from the floating battery to chassis of the vehicle is formed. This can be a potentially life-threatening hazard. Previous attempts to make determinations of leakage impedance and location of leakage voltage nodes were costly and/or had measurement errors that were unacceptable. Accordingly, there is a need for a low cost and more precise alternative to the prior art systems.